Shield Bill a Clear Danger to Free Speech
January 4, 2011Shield Bill a Clear Danger to Free Speech
| |
bill clinton newt gingrich sarah palin al sharpton bill oreilly
January 4, 2011Shield Bill a Clear Danger to Free Speech
| |
bill clinton newt gingrich sarah palin al sharpton bill oreilly
January 4, 2011Private Virtue Needed in 2011Tony Blankley, Washington Times
| |
Daley, an executive at JPMorgan Chase, has extensive private sector experience, an attractive profile for a White House trying to counter the notion that the president is antibusiness. Obama aides have been discussing naming an executive to a top job as a way to give the business community more of a voice in the administration.
The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
Obama's first chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, resigned last year to run for Chicago mayor. The colorful and hard-edged Emanuel was replaced by interim chief of staff Pete Rouse, a low-key, behind the scenes troubleshooter who prefers to operate out of the spotlight. Daley, 62, has spent decades quietly but successfully maneuvering the political landscape. While his brother, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, focused on local issues, William Daley has had one foot in Chicago and one in Washington. With his ties to his family's powerful political dynasty, Daley would likely bring a broader public profile to the chief of staff job than the privacy-seeking Rouse. His appointment would also bring an outside voice into Obama's circle, and give the impression that Obama is willing to make changes following Democrats' sweeping defeats in the midterm elections. Other changes are expected to unfold soon. Rouse has been heading a staff review that is expected to lead to some shake-ups in the West Wing. David Plouffe, the architect of Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, is expected to be in the White House as soon as next week as an adviser to the president. One of the president's most trusted advisers, David Axelrod, is leaving this month; he is expected to take a break and recharge for a central role in the 2012 re-election campaign. Obama has been reviewing Rouse's report during his Hawaiian vacation, and a new-look White House structure of people and portfolios is expected to unfold over the coming weeks. It was thought that Rouse would stay on at least until the reorganization review was complete, along with the president's State of the Union address in late January and the release of Obama's budget proposal in February. But beyond that, Rouse has never relished the high-profile job as the top White House manager. Those close to Obama say top aides are generally being asked to make their intentions known now if they want to change or leaves jobs - or be prepared to stay on for the rest of the term - so there is stability as Obama heads into his re-election bid. Daley made his name in politics as a special counsel to then-President Bill Clinton, coordinating the successful campaign to pass the North American Free Trade Agreement and then serving as Clinton's commerce secretary. Later, he ran Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign and the historic recount effort that ended with Gore conceding the race to George W. Bush. Daley went into business after that race, and is now Midwest chairman of JPMorgan Chase. He has often been mentioned as a potential candidate for governor or senator in Illinois but never actually jumped in. When Obama launched his presidential campaign, the Daley family put aside its deep connections to Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton and endorsed the young Illinois senator. Until then, Obama and the Daleys had largely operated separately in Illinois politics - not helping each other much but not attacking either. After Obama's victory, Daley helped oversee the presidential transition. Daley's consideration was first reported by Bloomberg News.barak obama hillary clinton george w bush nancy pelosi harry reid
If Congress does not raise the debt ceiling, the result could be "catastrophic" for the American economy, Austan Goolsbee, chairman of the Council for Economic Advisers, said Sunday.
Speaking on ABC's "This Week," Goolsbee said that the debt ceiling was not something to toy with for political ends.
"If we hit the debt ceiling, that's essentially defaulting on our obligations, which is totally unprecedented in American history," he said. "The impact on the economy would be catastrophic. I mean, that would be a worse financial economic crisis than anything we saw in 2008."
hillary clinton george w bush nancy pelosi harry reid john mccain
Editor's note: Kathryn Jean Lopez is editor-at-large of National Review Online and a nationally syndicated columnist. Seth Leibsohn is a fellow of the Claremont Institute and a principal with the consulting firm Leibsohn & Associates.
(CNN) -- Dear New Members of the 112th Congress:
Welcome to Washington. By now you've received all kinds of advice from a crowd of experts, here and at home.
You've received counsel on what committees to seek out, what legislation to attach your name to, what position you should take on any given issue, what you should be known for.
People are talking to you about your legacy and your prospects. They're also telling you where you should live and what parties to go to. Very little goes without comment here. And there's much more to come. But as all of it overwhelms your in-boxes -- and your mind and soul -- please don't forget the most important details of all. It can be easy to neglect the fundamentals during the chaos of changing the way this town runs. But it's also critical to the mission: Don't forget to be good, to be decent.
King Solomon reminds us what legacy decency can yield, "A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold."
You are members of the largest novice class in six decades -- 94 freshman members of the United States House of Representatives, and 16 new senators. More than a few of you are new to town, many heralded in by a grass-roots Tea Party movement that, while undeniably in large part a response to the economic crisis, is about much more than that. At root, that movement is about responsibility. But there can be no meaningful accountability in Washington without leaders who personify responsibility. With that in mind, some words of encouragement and caution:
These are tough political, financial, and economic times. They're also ethically arduous. Yet, the road to solutions can be a minefield for those who do not keep their moral compass firmly in hand. Candidates who offer themselves as hope and a change -- and we do mean of either party -- too often come to believe that they themselves are those embodiments. They come to see themselves as not humble servants called to leadership but political messiahs who can do no wrong.
There are very good people in Washington, but some of the well-known cynicism about this place has merit, too. We are all familiar with the unholy litany of political leaders and staffers who have betrayed not only their responsibility but also their charge and duty.
barak obama hillary clinton george w bush nancy pelosi harry reid